Outrage as Labour MP claims £17 for a Remembrance Day poppy wreath on EXPENSES

AN MP has caused outrage after putting through an expenses claim for a Remembrance Day poppy wreath.

Sarah Champion claimed for a £17 Remembrance Day poppy wreath on expenses

Labour's Sarah Champion put in the £17 claim for the commemorative item in October last year, claiming it was a 'necessary expense'.

Ms Champion then laid the wreath at a service in her Rotherham constituency on November 11.

However, the MP has now said she will repay the money.

Ms Champion - who was elected in 2012 after a by-election to replace Denis MacShane, who had been jailed for expenses fraud - was not allowed to claim for Remembrance wreaths by IPSA, the parliamentary expenses watchdog.

However, Ms Champion, who worked as a chief executive of a hospice before entering parliament was still reimbursed.

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Sarah Champion was elected MP for Rotherham after Denis MacShane was jailed for expenses fraud

The claim shouldn’t have been made so of course I’ll reimburse IPSA on Monday.

Sarah Champion

Ms Champion told the Sun: "The claim shouldn’t have been made so of course I’ll reimburse IPSA on Monday."

A spokesman added: "We publish all details of what has happened and what MPs claim.

"In this case, we will be seeking a repayment from the MP."

However, both Ms Champion, 45, and IPSA were criticised over the matter.

Andy Silvester, of the TaxPayers’ Alliance, said: "Trying to put the bill on somebody else to honour our servicemen and women is downright low, and IPSA approving it shows how out of touch this monster of a quango is."

An IPSA spokesman said: "We publish all details of what has happened and also what MPs claim. In this case, we will be seeking a repayment from the MP."